From the Sports Desk: Regular Season NBA
I watched the Pistons beat Miami tonight, in what will almost certainly be a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals. Two things struck me, the first being just how little Bill Walton seems to pay attention to anything that's not happening right in front of his face. Shaquille O'Neal played a great game, and the whole time Walton kept saying, "They'll have to double Shaq, which will open up the shooters. The thing is, Detroit never doubles Shaq. It will rotate help when he spins and dribbles, but the Pistons play him honest. It eliminates a lot of the open shots Miami should get out of its offense.
And the second is, these regular season games really have nothing to do with what's going to happen in the postseason. Because here's the thing, Detroit was terrible for about 30 minutes on Wednesday. Then it finally pulled its collective head out its collective ass and played some really inspired basketball. And for it's part, Miami looked like a team that was playing its fourth game in five nights and without its No. 2 center. In the game last month in Miami, Dwayne Wade went absolutely crazy in the fourth quarter and scored the final 17 points. Or there was the game just after Christmas, when Detroit just absorbed what was then the Heat's best shot. And really, Miami's a completely different team. Detroit will likely have turned to resting its starters by the time these teams in meet again in April. So the answer is, the regular season offers absolutely no clue to what kind of series these two teams will play in two months.
I still think Detroit is better (winning it in 6 games better. The Heat's biggest strength relative to the Pistons is their bench, but that doesn't matter so much in postseason. There are no back-to-back games, so the physical wear-and-tear is actually less on the players. Miami will probably have the two best players in the series, but Detroit will counter with No. 3-7. And over the long haul, I think that should be enough. I am, to be sure, nervous about that series.
Unlike last year, when it was pretty obvious where the season was heading, I can't really make a finals prediction.
And the second is, these regular season games really have nothing to do with what's going to happen in the postseason. Because here's the thing, Detroit was terrible for about 30 minutes on Wednesday. Then it finally pulled its collective head out its collective ass and played some really inspired basketball. And for it's part, Miami looked like a team that was playing its fourth game in five nights and without its No. 2 center. In the game last month in Miami, Dwayne Wade went absolutely crazy in the fourth quarter and scored the final 17 points. Or there was the game just after Christmas, when Detroit just absorbed what was then the Heat's best shot. And really, Miami's a completely different team. Detroit will likely have turned to resting its starters by the time these teams in meet again in April. So the answer is, the regular season offers absolutely no clue to what kind of series these two teams will play in two months.
I still think Detroit is better (winning it in 6 games better. The Heat's biggest strength relative to the Pistons is their bench, but that doesn't matter so much in postseason. There are no back-to-back games, so the physical wear-and-tear is actually less on the players. Miami will probably have the two best players in the series, but Detroit will counter with No. 3-7. And over the long haul, I think that should be enough. I am, to be sure, nervous about that series.
Unlike last year, when it was pretty obvious where the season was heading, I can't really make a finals prediction.
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